The prosecution rested this morning in the case against a man accused in the 2005 Garland gang beating death of a 16-year-old boy.

Sergio Valencia, 25, faces up to life in prison if convicted of engaging in organized crime in the unprovoked attack on Jacob Orta early on the morning of May 15, 2005. Authorities believe Valencia and six other men and boys accused Jacob and a friend of being in a rival gang. They beat them with bats and kicked and punched them, according to testimony.

The boys were not in a gang and they said so, but Jacob was badly beaten and left bleeding in a road. A van also ran over his body and did not stop. Jacob’s friend got away with a broken arm.

Valencia has opted not to testify in the case, his attorney told state District Judge John Creuzot.

Before resting their case, prosecutors called Dallas police Det. Kurt Hibbets, a member of a U.S. Marshals task force that took Valencia into custody in Mexico last year.

Hibbets provided a timeline of events leading to the arrest of Valencia in Mexico more than six years after Jacob’s death.

An arrest warrant in the case was first issued for Valencia in September 2005. In 2008, authorities received an anonymous tip that Valencia was in Mexico, Hibbets said.

A Mexican arrest warrant was issued for Valencia, a U.S. citizen, in March 2010 and he was captured on Oct. 28, 2010, according to testimony. It took more than a year for the extradition process to play out, Hibbets said.

“In Mexico, it’s a very lengthy process,” he said.

On Dec. 9, 2011, Hibbets and a partner traveled to Mexico City and picked up Valencia.

Cox asked if Valencia was therefore happy to see the Dallas police officer.

“He was very glad to see me,” Hibbets said.

Prosecutors Travis Wiles and Jennifer Bennett rested their case following the officer’s testimony.

Defense attorney Karo Johnson then called witness Denise Salazar back to the stand. She had previously testified yesterday for the prosecution.

As he has done throughout the trial, Johnson again highlighted what he considers inconsistencies in her prior statements and court testimony.

He has also accused Salazar and other women who witnessed the beating of being gang members themselves. The women have denied the accusations and they do not face charges in the case.

UPDATE AT 2 P.M.:

In closing arguments this afternoon, prosecutors called on jurors to deliver a guilty verdict that they said Valencia ran from for more than seven years.

Wiles said that after the ambush beating of Jacob in May 2005, Valencia “hightailed it to Mexico” and only came back when officers went and got him late last year.

Valencia appeared to cry and shake his head in disagreement, as Wiles argued that he was the leader among the seven gang members who attacked Jacob and his friend, Bobby Williams.

“They beat him to a point where he didn’t stand a chance,” Wiles said. “He was going to die in that street whether a car came by or not … It’s the gang culture, it’s what they do, it’s how they represent.”

Defense attorneys countered that the key witnesses in the case, three women who were hanging out with the gang, lack credibility. Johnson noted that one of the three women was driving a getaway car in which some gang members rode away from the scene. Valencia was believed to be driving a pickup with other gang members.

And Johnson even suggested that Jacob may have been a rival gang member, despite the fact that that has long been known to be untrue.

UPDATE AT 3:35: The jury found Valencia guilty after nearly 90 minutes of deliberation. Judge Creuzot is expected to sentence Valencia tomorrow.